Baby Girl
by Aslan's Princess
Summary: Namine is frustrated by a nickname Riku keeps calling her.


**Baby Girl**

Namine bit her lip as she considered the silver-haired teen at the end of the hall. It had been a couple weeks since he'd last been in the mansion, and a couple weeks since she had heard his unusual nickname for her.

_"How you doing, baby girl?"_ He'd asked, meeting her eyes, just days before he donned the black blindfold.

_"Don't kill yourself, baby girl,"_ he had said, taking away her art supplies and wrapping her exhausted form in a warm blanket.

_"Baby girl, relax,"_ he'd half-chuckled as she spiraled into a near-panic attack as she worried about the passing months.

_"How's it coming, baby girl?"_ He'd asked, peering over her shoulder to see her current picture.

And many, many, more instances, spanning the months from his initial return to now.

Every time, a part of her bristled. Yes, she was young. Yes, she was naive. But she wasn't a baby. Aside from the name however, Riku never treated her like a baby, so why did he keep calling her that.

Yet, she also couldn't deny that whenever she heard that nickname, something in his voice made her feel safe, accepted, cared for. She hated these conflicting emotions. Dreading the sound of the name and anticipating it at the same time.

"Hi, baby girl. Everything okay?"

Namine jerked her head up to see Riku standing before her. Tall, imposing, the weight of worlds upon his shoulders. Somehow still managing to meet her face, if not her eyes through the blindfold. "Why do you always call me that?" she asked.

"Huh?" He backed away a step, mouth dropping in surprise. "Um, call you what?" Wait. Was he . . . _blushing_?

"'Baby girl.' Why do you keep calling me that?" she said. "I'm not a baby, so why?"

Riku half-turned as he ducked his head. "I-I know you're not a baby. It's just a term of endearment. You've proven yourself strong, but I still feel a need to protect you. And . . . it's something that my mom said Dad used to call her." He was blushing a couple deep shades of red now. "She'd always tell me how Dad would take me on his knee and say, 'Son, wait for that special girl that you'll love and hold forever. Once you find her, she can be your "baby girl." Just be sure to watch over her if you call her that.'"

Namine smiled even as her cheeks felt a little rosier than usual. She bit back her giggles at Riku's thoroughly red, embarrassed face. "Thank you for sharing, Riku." A quick impulse took over and she shot to her tip-toes to peck a kiss to his cheek. "And thank you for choosing me for your baby girl." She then scurried off, feeling his shocked gaze on her.

It wouldn't be until hours later that Riku would join her on a window seat. Namine leaned back against his chest as his left arm draped around her. As she quietly drew, restoring memories, Riku softly played a clay ocarina. Namine gently smiled as she rested her eyes for a moment. Living under the manipulative Marluxia and cruel Larxene, she'd come to believe no one could love her, a Nobody witch that should have never been. But now, here she was, beloved and special.

A soft sigh slipped through her lips as she relaxed further. Soon everything drifted away. The last thing she felt and heard until morning was a soft kiss on her head and, "Sweet dreams, baby girl."

* * *

**Author Note: Okay, couple things inspired this. One: my sister mentioning how she spent about a week calling different people such things as "darling" and "honey." Two: remembering a little snippet from a comic/story made by Axelxlea on deviantart where Riku addresses Namine as "baby girl." Two and a half: snatches of Criminal Minds where one of the main characters is sometimes called "baby girl."**

**And yes, I have developed a little headcanon where Riku plays an ocarina, though only a handful of people know. I'll have to do a little one- to three-shot about the how and why sometime.**

**Would you believe that I got the first initial draft done for this within one or two hours?! For some of you out there, that may not be a big deal, but for a girl who tends to over-think plot and story-telling, even for a one-shot, this. Is. Huge! Not that I'm saying I necessarily considered it "share it ready" after one sitting. But still, this is possibly one of my shortest fanfiction to date.**

**(Oh, and visit Axelxlea on their deviantart. Their artwork is amazing, and they have some awesome comics and stories for Kingdom Hearts.)**


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